


A Glimmer of Light

by Amarxlen



Series: Lucky0Stars Collections [10]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: F/M, Female Reader, Lucky0Stars Requests, Pregnancy, Pregnant Reader, Reader Insert, fem!reader - Freeform, vanitas - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-04-07
Packaged: 2021-02-23 08:03:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23008339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amarxlen/pseuds/Amarxlen
Summary: A series of ficlets depicting the relationship between Vanitas/Fem!Reader as they discover she is pregnant, and the ensuing journey. Requests from Lucky0Stars tumblr
Relationships: Vanitas (Kingdom Hearts)/Reader
Series: Lucky0Stars Collections [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1308893
Comments: 2
Kudos: 44





	1. Chapter 1

The atmosphere in the room was heavy, as if when you’d sucked in a breath you’d taken all the air with you and now there was none left to breathe at all. For days you had agonized over your discovery, lying awake at night with Vanitas while he held you, neither of you able to sleep. If he had noticed anything amiss about your behavior or sudden trouble sleeping, he didn’t say anything. 

Then again, he usually didn’t say much of anything. He was still trying to get used to his freedom, to the fact that somebody even cared about him — actually, truly cared about him without any ulterior motives or goals. There were still times when you’d tell him you loved him, or show him affection and he’d look at you as though you were crazy or worse, with suspicion. It broke your heart every time and strengthened your resolve to be transparent in your affections.

So you hadn’t exactly expected him to be jumping for joy, or even react well. But his silence and suddenly blank expression had your heart constricting in a way that felt like, even though you’d just sucked in a breath, you were drowning. Ever since you’d uttered three little words.

_ “Vanitas, I’m pregnant.” _

Your hands rested on your stomach and your lips parted, tears welling up in your eyes. You hadn’t expected him to be excited, but you hadn’t been prepared for how much his silence would hurt.

“Vanitas…” 

His golden eyes snapped up to you, no longer blank, but instead sharp and full of emotion. He’d long since learned how to control the creation of his Unversed, but you knew that, had he not, the room would be filling with them. The thought almost made your tears fall, but you held them back. Instead you drew a deep breath to steady yourself.

“Say something.”

“Like what?” he demanded, voice an acerbic jab. You couldn’t help but wince. “You want me to say how happy I am? You want me to be excited? I can’t even—”

He cut himself off, clicking his tongue and looking away from you. His eyes narrowed and he clenched his fists, but that was all you could see before your vision blurred completely. The room fell silent again, except for the sound of your sniffling as you wrapped your arms around yourself, trying to keep from falling completely undone. Vanitas was rarely gentle, and you couldn’t exactly call him kind, but it had been a long time since you’d heard this kind of cruelty fall from his lips. What you really wanted was for him to wrap his arms around you, to tell you everything would be okay and you’d figure it out together, even though neither of you had any idea how to handle this.

As hard as you tried to keep them at bay, dark thoughts swirled through your mind. 

_ He doesn’t want you, and he doesn’t want your child. He— _

“What kind of father could a shadow like me even be?”

He didn’t look at you as he said the words, and they couldn’t even begin to describe what he left unsaid. You sucked in a breath, looking back up at him and taking in the expression on his face — a combination of bitterness, mockery, and self-hatred. Suddenly, you understood.

“Vanitas,” you said again, taking a step towards him.

Vanitas stiffened at your movement and, before you could stop him, turned and walked out the door. You stared after him with wide eyes, arms still outstretched to try to hold him. Your mind was blank, except for one thought, swirling and growing in intensity for every moment you were left alone.

_ He left us. _

Your arms fell limply to your sides.

“Come back…” your voice was hardly more than a whisper and still it broke on the words. “Vanitas…”

Then all at once your sobs ripped from your throat, tears falling from your eyes in earnest, with no one there to help you dry them.


	2. Chapter 2

You weren’t sure when you finally fell asleep, between your restless tossing and turning and the tears that fell silently from your eyes, but at some point you managed. You’d debated going after Vanitas, try to talk to him and tell him that you understood. Even though you had known that was the right thing to do, you couldn’t bring yourself to do it. 

You hadn’t expected him to be ecstatic… but you hadn’t expected him to be so terrified by the idea. Thinking about it now, you realized that you should have expected it. It had taken him so long to open up to you, and even now there were plenty of things you didn’t know about him. But this… this you should have realized. The only parental figure he’d ever known had been Xehanort, and that was a stretch if you ever heard one. Vanitas still had trouble accepting when you told him you loved him. Yes, you should have known that he would react poorly to the knowledge.

The sound of the door shutting behind him kept echoing through your thoughts, the way his voice had sounded utterly despondent when he’d asked you what kind of father he could be making your heart ache over and over again. Were either of you prepared for this? No, your brain immediately supplied, neither of you were. You didn’t know the first thing about babies, and the two of you were still getting used to each other. As much as you thought you’d known Vanitas, you’d still managed to make yourself believe that he wouldn’t take the news as horribly as he did. You had no idea what to do, except wait for him to come back and try not to let yourself think that he might not come back.

All these thoughts swirled in your head — the knowledge you should go after him, the hurt at his apparent rejection and the thought that he didn’t think himself capable of being a father, the inability to make yourself do anything but cry — until they became a dull roar before your dreamless sleep.

You woke up again when you felt arms slipping around you, and the bed shifting underneath the weight of Vanitas pressing himself against you. It was still dark, and showed no signs of lightening

“Vani…”

Tears stung at your eyes again as you reflexively clung to his arms wrapped around you. He hadn’t said anything yet, but the fact that he was back said more than enough. Vanitas’ arms tightened around you and you felt him bury his face against your neck.

You wanted to tell him how much he meant to you. You wanted to tell him that you were scared out of your mind too, that you had no idea what to do and it all seemed so overwhelming that you had no idea where to even start. More than anything, you wanted to assure him that, despite all that, none of your worries had anything to do with what kind of father he would be.

“Vanitas, I—”

“Just…” He took a deep shuddering breath that you felt from your head to your toes. “Be quiet, okay?”

Your words died in your throat. His tone wasn’t angry. It wasn’t bitter or callous or demanding. It was soft, and tired. A plea for you to understand that he didn’t want to talk at the moment. You could only guess why, if it was shame for his actions, the fear that you still held as well, simple tiredness. Regardless of what it was exactly, you listened, swallowing the words you’d been about to say — even though you still weren’t sure what they would have been — and settling for relaxing deeper into his arms. He had come back. He hadn’t abandoned you. The explanation could wait until morning.

Except for one thing.

You let your hands slide up his arms to find his hands, bringing them softly to your lips and closing your eyes. You felt his breath hitch and his body tense, but he didn’t pull away.

“I love you, Vanitas.”

He didn’t respond, but he didn’t pull away from you either. A small, tired smile tugged at your lips as exhaustion took hold of you once again.

Just before you gave in to it completely, you could swear you heard him say, “I love you too,” as his lips brushed against your ear.

* * *

Waking up the next morning in Vanitas’ arms was almost enough to make you forget everything of the night before. For a few blissful moments, nothing had changed. It was still just the two of you, and things weren’t exactly easy, but you got by.

It didn’t take long for reality to set it, for your body to tense as you remembered the previous night. Thinking about it, it didn’t seem like enough had happened for you to be as tired as you were, but you were still so exhausted — as though you hadn’t slept at all the previous night. You closed your eyes again, trying to bring back the feeling you had when you’d first woken up.

A conversation had to happen, you knew it did. You just weren’t entirely sure if you were ready for it. You couldn’t explain why you were so nervous about him reacting negatively — the butterflies in your stomach were impossible to differentiate from the nausea you’d been growing increasingly used to. Living with Vanitas wasn’t always easy. It often required you to be patient and understanding, even when you had no idea what was going through his head. And normally you could handle that, you’d become used to it. So why was it now that the thought terrified you?

You pressed a hand to your mouth, trying to quell your nausea. Vanitas’ arms tightened around you, and you were surprised to realize you hadn’t noticed he was awake sooner. Of course he was awake, he hardly slept.

He didn’t say anything, but after a moment, he reached up and softly brushed your hair back from your forehead. You only had a split second to enjoy the touch and its sentiment before the sensation sent your nausea skyrocketing. Jumping from the bed, you ignored the way the room tilted awkwardly around you from your sudden movement and ran for the bathroom. You knelt there, trying to mentally prepare yourself while your stomach still decided whether or not it would settle.

Vanitas’ approach was silent, you had no idea how long he’d been standing in the doorway before he spoke.

“Should I…?”

You weren’t sure what he was asking, but at this point, it didn’t matter. You nodded your head in response, gratitude surging through you as you felt him sit down next to you and place his hand tentatively on your back.

“Can you…?” You managed to ask, miming a circle with your hand when he didn’t move.

He slowly started rubbing gentle circles on your back, and you tried to focus on that and breathing, more than the nausea that ebbed and flowed. Eventually, you felt it settle and you closed your eyes in relief, causing a few small tears to fall down your face. You hadn’t even realized your eyes were watering, or maybe you had been crying. At the time, you’d been too focused on not throwing up to care. Letting out a sigh, you sat up slowly and then leaned heavily against Vanitas.

His body was warm and strong against yours, and just being near him let a sense of calm wash over you. A sense of calm that he did not reciprocate, if the anxious beating of his heart under your ear was any indication. You frowned, reaching up and curling your fingers in his shirt.

“Vanitas,” you sighed. It was now or never. Maybe not literally, but you were pretty certain that he wouldn’t throw you off of him in order to escape the conversation. “We need to talk.”

“Y/N,” he said, voice low. “I don’t—”

“Just listen.” You sat up so that you could look him in the face.”I know you’re scared.” He scowled at you, but that didn’t deter you from what you needed to say. “I’m scared too. It’s not like we planned this, I have no idea what to do or how to act and—” Your eyes began filling with tears again as you continued. “—for some reason everything makes me want to cry and I just, I  _ need _ you, Vani.”

His expression had softened, but he couldn’t meet your gaze and his cheeks were slightly flushed. You waited for him to say something, watching his face for any indication that he was about to speak, but he remained silent. You sighed.

“I don’t know what kind of father you’ll be. I can’t predict that.” You looked away from him uncertainly. You hesitated for just a brief moment before shuffling so that you were kneeling in front of him and could see his face better. “I don’t know what kind of mom I’ll be either. I’m scared, but this is happening, Vanitas, and I can’t do it alone and I  _ need _ you,” you repeated.

His golden eyes darted around the bathroom, seeming to land on every single object within it except for you. Finally, after what seemed like forever, he sighed, long and low, and looked at you. He smacked the back of his head against the bathroom wall, eyes on the ceiling as he ran a hand through his hair.

“You sure picked a real winner, you know that?”

A small smile tugged at your lips.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

His lips twitched briefly in return, parting slightly when you nestled yourself back into his arms. His hands hovered awkwardly over your stomach before you grabbed them and positioned them over yourself.

“So… what now?”

“I’m not sure.” You shrugged. “But we’ll figure it out together.”


	3. Chapter 3

Trying to keep your eyes open had become a struggle as you drifted in and out of sleep. At some point you couldn’t quite pinpoint, your bed had stopped being comfortable and had instead become a place to lie awake at night and stare up at the ceiling. The couch had seemed like a better place to do this — if you were going to be up all night anyway, why just lay in bed? 

It had taken quite some doing from both you and Vanitas, but eventually you had amassed enough pillows in the right positions for you to finally be comfortable. You sank into them, and silently vowed you weren’t going to move ever again. The further along in your pregnancy you got, the more uncomfortable you got. You’d — foolishly, you could see now — thought that things would get better once you got past the first trimester.

And in some ways they had. Your morning sickness had subsided immensely, and you’d stopped falling asleep at the drop of a hat, regardless of how many hours of sleep you’d gotten the night before. At least until your growing stomach had started straining your back and making it impossible to sleep. You alternately tossed and turned and stared up at the ceiling for hours on end, until sheer exhaustion took over, but only briefly. It never seemed to be long enough.

Now though, now you felt as though you were lying on clouds. Somehow you and Vanitas had found every spot that needed to be elevated, every place that needed support. No, you thought, nothing could possibly make you move at this point. And thankfully, you didn’t have to.

Vanitas may not have been a master with words, but he made up for it with his actions. Ever since he’d come back to you the night you first told him the news, he’d been doing his best to show that he was there for you. He made sure you were comfortable and tried to fulfill every craving you told him about. He also attended every appointment you had. Though you still saw him eyeing your stomach with something akin to fear every once in a while, it meant far more to you to see him trying at all.

You frowned, bringing your hand up subconsciously to rest on your stomach. While you appreciated everything Vanitas  _ had _ been doing for you, there were still some things that you wished he could be more open about and involved in. He would listen to what you had to say, sure. But as more time passed, you were starting to see that it wasn’t enough. You needed him to help you make choices, not sit back and let you decide everything. This was all new and terrifying to you as well, and you weren’t sure if what you were doing was right or best, though you hoped it was.

Sometimes you wondered if you were asking for too much from Vanitas. Neither of you had planned this, but of the two of you, you had to admit to yourself that he was the one less prepared. Not only that, but he had plenty of reason to be scared outside of the usual reasons. Your fingers tightened in your shirt. You couldn’t help but wonder if Vanitas would ever be free of Xehanort’s ghost. Other times you wondered if it was really Xehanort’s ghost that haunted him, or if it was all his own demons.

Vanitas had never said as much out loud, but you’d finally figured out what he was so terrified of. It was his own darkness. The darkness that you knew still lingered inside of him, even if most of the time you both tried to pretend it didn’t. It wasn’t easy for either of you, but this was what you’d chosen, and so this was what you lived with. Things would be okay, you kept repeating to yourself.

You breathed in and out slowly and deliberately. Things would be okay. Then, your eyes shot open.

Both hands now rested on your stomach, where you’d just felt a particularly powerful kick. Over the past few weeks you’d been feeling them more and more. Little flutters at first, that were easily lost if you were moving or not paying attention. The larger your baby got, the more obvious the sensations became, until they were impossible to ignore. Each bit of movement never failed to fill you with awe at the wonderfulness and strangeness of what was happening inside your body. No longer was the baby just an idea, a terrifying concept — it was a real, living thing.

If your hand hadn’t been directly on your stomach, you might not have known that now the baby’s kicks could be felt from the outside. Which meant…

You couldn’t help but smile slightly.

“Vani.” Your voice came out quietly, thick with tiredness. You cleared your throat and tried again. “Vanitas.”

Instantly, he was at your side, sitting on the edge of the couch, but careful not to disturb your pillows. 

“What?” he asked. His golden eyes were searching you up and down for any signs of distress or discomfort. He relaxed only slightly when he didn’t see anything visibly wrong with you and that you were actually smiling. His expression fell into something more controlled. Not quite stoic, but still somewhat guarded, as you’d come to expect from him.

“Look,” you said, voice still hushed.

Before he could do anything in response, you grabbed his hands, placing them where yours had just rested on your stomach. You stared at him, holding your breath. After a moment, when nothing had happened, he raised an eyebrow at you slightly. His fingers twitched beneath yours and you just pressed them tighter against your stomach.

“Y/N—”

“Shhhh!” You knew that him talking wouldn’t make it any more difficult to feel the baby kicking, but you couldn’t help the reprimand. He listened, his mouth twisting in a thin line. Your expression softened. “Vanitas, it’s okay,” you assured him.

As if in response to your words, the baby kicked again. Your eyes darted down to your stomach again. You grinned. You opened your mouth to ask Vanitas if he’d felt it, but the look on his face answered your question before you could even ask it. His wide eyes as he pulled his hand away said everything. You let him pull away, waiting patiently, while pushing down the twinge of hurt at the same time. He just needed time. You hoped.

The silence stretched between you before he looked up and met your gaze. Smiling at him reassuringly, you moved your hands away from your stomach, offering him the choice to feel the baby kick again or not. He hesitated. His hand was lifted between the two of you, and you watched his fingers curl and then stretch again. After a moment, he reached out and placed his hand on your stomach. You slowly reached up to shift his hand towards where you’d felt the most recent kick. It took another moment, but the baby kicked again. This time, Vanitas didn’t move his hand.

You watched him, waiting for him to speak. 

“That’s…”

All you could do was smile at him. As terrifying as the experience was and as unsure as you were about everything, there was something magical about those tiny kicks. They never failed to make you smile. Ever since you’d started feeling them, you’d been waiting for the day that Vanitas would be able to as well. It was almost impossible for you to contain your happiness, but you didn’t want Vanitas to feel pressured in this moment. You’d learned that it was best to let him come to some conclusions on his own.

His fingers spread over your skin. There was another kick. You couldn’t help but watch him carefully, waiting for any change in his expression. His eyes had widened ever so slightly, lips parting. The more you watched, the more you thought he might begin to smile.

“That’s… really weird,” he deadpanned.

For a moment, all you could do was stare at him. Then, you snorted and began laughing. You weren’t sure what you’d been expecting him to say, and it hadn’t been that, but for some reason, you found it hysterical. Once you’d started laughing, you found it hard to stop, and it took you several minutes to regain control. By the time you’d stopped laughing, there were tears in your eyes. Catching sight of Vanitas’ expression was nearly enough to send you back into your laughing fit.

“Yeah, it is,” you agreed. “Can you imagine living it?” Vanitas looked appropriately horrified at the suggestion and you laughed again. “But honestly,” you said once you’d calmed down, “isn’t it amazing?”

You followed his gaze back down to your stomach. He readjusted himself on the couch and for a moment, said nothing. His hand tightened over your skin and you squeezed it. His expression had softened once more; this time you were sure you could see a smile forming, though he didn’t let it grow.

“Yeah,” he said, so softly you almost didn’t hear it. “It is.”


	4. Chapter 4

Vanitas was a lot of things, more than your could count, and most of them things he wouldn’t admit to. He was cold and callous, he was equal parts self-assured and insecure, he was reckless, yet calculating. He couldn’t let you suffer by yourself, but he didn’t have to first clue of how to comfort somebody and so he always just held you awkwardly. He showed his love in ways that weren’t obvious, but were no less real for how he displayed them. If asked how to describe himself, he would deflect the question before ever answering it. Oftentimes, he would even deny things you knew to be true. It wasn’t that you could read his mind, or knew what he was thinking at all times, but nobody could deny that you knew him better than most.

That being said, even you couldn’t have predicted the way Vanitas would react to seeing and holding his daughter for the first time. Your pregnancy had strained the relationship between the two of you in ways you could barely believe, even having just lived it. You’d overreacted and panicked more than you’d like to admit, especially when it was clear Vanitas was dealing with his own doubts and fears. You couldn’t say that you were ready to be a parent either, but you didn’t have the same experiences growing up as he did. You could know what he went through all you wanted, but it didn’t mean that you would ever fully understand it. And that was something you were still trying to come to terms with.

Now, the two of you were finally at the end of that chapter, and instead of finding relief, found yourselves at a whole new beginning that was completely different from what either of you had been expecting. It took a long time for the two of you to finally be left alone — doctors and nurses and other hospital personnel were in and out of the room in a blur of names and faces you couldn’t remember, and of course a slew of your friends had come to see you. By the end of it all, you were exhausted, and, with lethargic surprise, you found yourself trying to remember the last time  _ you _ had even held your baby.

A pang of anxious longing rushed through you as your eyes darted around the room, blearily taking longer to find Vanitas and your daughter than you normally would have. As soon as you found them, you breath left you in a relieved sigh. They weren’t far from you at all. Vanitas and your daughter were sitting in the armchair next to your bed, just out of arm’s reach, but close enough that you could see Vanitas’ face. His head was angled down at your daughter, and at first glance, his face seemed expressionless. At least, that was how you knew other people would perceive it, and was in fact how your exhausted mind interpreted it at first.

But the longer you looked at him, the more you began to see it. His lips were parted slightly, brow furrowed. If it weren’t for that detail, you could have thought that he was asleep entirely. The thought of sleep was enticing, but though your eyelids felt heavy, you simply couldn’t stop staring at the pair of them. The clearest way you could describe his expression at that moment was confused. There was a question there, though you didn’t understand what it was.

His body was tensed, but not as though he was waiting for an attack, rather… Another soft exhalation passed your lips, the most you could muster as a laugh at the moment. It wasn’t enough to draw Vanitas’ attention and in a small way you were grateful for that. You weren’t worried about him seeing you, completely exhausted, a wreck. That possibility didn’t bother you at all. You just wanted to soak in this moment, of seeing him, arms caged protectively around your daughter, an astounding near mirror image of him. Already sporting a dark head of hair and those same golden eyes, the pair of them were more breathtaking than anything else you’d ever seen in your entire life. And considering your journeys, that was saying something.

If you ever had to choose a moment, just one moment, to freeze in time and live over and over, it would be this one. Finally, as if sensing your gaze, Vanitas looked up at you.

Now that he was facing you directly, you could see the exhaustion on his face as well — he’d been up as long as you had, maybe even longer. But there was also a brightness, a fervor behind those eyes that sent your heart swelling with so much love for the two in front of you that, before you could even think to stop them, fat tears were rolling down your cheeks. As much as you’d expressed your faith in him, there had been a tiny fear in the back of your mind you couldn’t squash. Vanitas rose from his chair as quickly and smoothly as he could, trying not to jostle your daughter too much. And then suddenly, all you could do was laugh. 

The two of you had been so terrified, so unsure, but in the dimness of the hospital room and in light of seeing far more transparently than you’d ever been able to before just how much  _ love _ Vanitas was truly capable of, all of those fears seemed far less worrisome. Before he could get a word out, you just shook your head slightly. You opened your arms, and after slight hesitation he began to hand you your baby.

“No, Vani,” you said softly. Your throat felt raw and your voice came out hoarse, even though you hadn’t spoken loudly. “Both of you.”

It took some doing, but after a bit of shuffling and careful repositioning on your part, all three of you were able to fit on the skinny hospital bed. Your daughter now rested on your chest, barely stirring as she was moved from Vanitas’ arms to yours. One of Vanitas’ arms was propped awkwardly under your head and pillow, while the other one was draped carefully over the top of your stomach. It wasn’t the most comfortable of positions, but you were too tired, and far too happy, to care. All that mattered was that the three of you were safe, together, and happy.

And you could tell Vanitas was happy, that his fears, worries, and doubts were, at least for the moment, the furthest thing from his mind. His breathing was steady, and you were sure that if you could muster the energy to look up at him, his eyes would still be glued to the beautiful baby in your arms. But something had changed in him over the past few hours. You had a sense it was the same thing that had changed in you. The center of your universe had shifted, and everything looked different now.

“I know we were scared before,” you started.

“Y/N, don’t talk right now.” His gentle admonishment, or as gentle as Vanitas could manage, made you smile. You knew you sounded awful, but you could feel sleep starting to take over, and you didn’t want to forget to tell him what you were feeling in this moment.

“I have to say this,” you said, trying to keep the words from slipping away. “I know we were scared before,” you repeated. “And I know that this is only the beginning and… we have so much more ahead of us. Things we haven’t even thought about yet. Maybe I’ll be scared again when I’m not dead tired and can think straight. But… I’m not scared right now, and I know you’ll be a great dad.”

You swallowed roughly as you finished speaking, wishing that you had some water, but not even that could make you move in this moment. You didn’t want to be away from Vanitas and your baby for a single second, no matter the discomfort. As the silence stretched on, you felt your eyes grow heavier, before they finally closed. Dimly, you realized Vanitas hadn’t yet responded to you, but the warmth of his arm over you and his closeness made it easy to feel it when he held you just a little bit tighter. Sleep was quickly overtaking you, making you feel as though you were lost in a strange limbo between waking and sleep.

“I… I’m not scared either,” Vanitas finally said.

Later, you couldn’t be sure if he had actually said the words, or if your sleep deprived mind had just imagined them. You never asked, unsure of how Vanitas would react to your question. So you would hold the memory close and let it buoy you when things became too much to bear sometimes.

Vanitas was many things, more than you could name, or count, and more than he would admit to. But nobody could say that he didn’t love you and your daughter with every bit of his fractured heart.


	5. Chapter 5

The small smile on Vanitas’s face didn’t last long. Though they never really had in the past either, they had been a lot more common since your daughter had been born, especially when he thought nobody was looking. At the moment, there was nobody else on the street, and so you were enjoying a relaxing moment with the pair of people who were more important to you than anyone else in all the worlds.

It hadn’t been easy adjusting to late nights and early mornings with maybe twenty minutes of solid rest somewhere in there if you were lucky. You and Vanitas had been fighting more than you were used to. Half the time you couldn’t even figure out how the argument had started — a misplaced word, a barbed statement, patience running thinner than your sleep schedule. Any one or more of them could be the culprit at any given time. But more importantly than that, there were the quiet moments. Moments where your daughter slept in Vanitas’s arms and the thought crossed your mind to do so as well but you couldn’t bring yourself to stop staring at them. The dishes needed doing, there was laundry stained with spit up, you should probably shower… All those nagging thoughts disappeared at the sight of them, your daughter sleeping peacefully, Vanitas, face soft, and utterly enraptured.

There were moments like this, where Vanitas appeared to have all but dropped his guard as he made noises reminiscent of cooing or babbling at your daughter. A sight you had almost not dared to hope to see, knowing how much he hated showing any sort of weakness. Knowing how it had been drilled in to him for his entire existence that only his negative emotions could give him strength. Seeing him melt around her, you couldn’t help but do the same and melt at the sight.

The three of you walked down the quiet street, your daughter in Vanitas’s arms as you headed home from a small shopping trip. It was a beautiful day, and not just because the sun was shining brightly above you, warming your skin without being overwhelming. A smile stretched across your face listening to your daughter’s laughter and Vanitas’s nonsense babbling. You never really had the conscious thought that Vanitas and your daughter couldn’t get any cuter, until Vanitas said something or your daughter did something, and your heart was so overwhelmed with love you thought it might explode. You honestly didn’t know how life could get any better. In that moment, you wished that you could freeze time forever. These smiles, this laughter; you didn’t need anything more than this.

Vanitas looked up and caught your eye, smile shrinking but not quite disappearing in self-consciousness. Even in front of you, his smiles were fragile, prone to disappearing at a moment’s notice. You didn’t mind — it was enough to know that he would freely give his smiles to your daughter. They were a precious commodity, and she deserved every one.

You opened your mouth to speak, but before any words could come out a dark shadow stole your attention. In the next moment, Vanitas was pulling you close to him while simultaneously trying to pass off your daughter as quickly and carefully as possible. Your arms opened for her immediately without any thought, paying no mind to the grocery bags that fell to the ground. They thumped and splattered across the pavement. You barely registered the contents bursting and spraying across your legs, because you’d finally identified what the shadow in front of you was. 

It had appeared from nowhere, or perhaps more accurately, nothing and now it floated in front of you, somehow menacing and larger than life. Once it had fully appeared, you could see that it was purple in color, lighter at the head and then darkening to an almost black at the ankles before lightening again on its large pointed feet. The creature wielded a large, threatening crossbow. Though instead of eyes, its face was decorated with a black plus shape, you had no doubts that it was somehow looking past Vanitas, and straight at you. 

Fighting creatures like this was second nature to you, and you hadn’t been so bedridden — at least during a good chunk of your pregnancy — that your skills had completely faded. Under normal circumstances, you’d be preparing to jump into the fray yourself to defend whoever the monster had decided to target. But as Vanitas summoned his Keyblade in a burst of light and snarled at you to take your daughter and hide, you were forced to face that this was anything but normal circumstances. 

You had a daughter to protect now. You’d just have to leave the fighting to Vanitas. 

Without another word he lunged toward the enemy, and you didn’t stop to see who would land the first blow. You turned away immediately, your only thought being to get to safety. The town square was busy this time of day, or maybe you could find one of your friends to stay with for the time being. You’d figure it out as you went. 

Or so you thought. 

Before you could even make it off of the street you and Vanitas had been walking down, a second creature, identical to the first, appeared and barred your path. You skidded to a stop, eyes wide as your arms wrapped tighter around your daughter. Your mind raced trying to figure out what to do. You couldn’t release your daughter — she was too young, too small, too defenseless. It was out of the question. For that reason alone, you couldn’t fight. 

Desperately, you wanted to look and see what Vanitas was doing, if he’d been able to dispatch the first monster, but nothing could make you tear your eyes from this second threat. You held your breath, frantically wishing that you’d brought the baby sling with you — at least then your hands would be free to summon your weapon and create a barrier between you and the enemy. That would have been enough, just to buy some time until Vanitas could come help you.

Taking a step back, you heard the sounds of the battle behind you. As much as you wanted to look and see what was happening, you knew you couldn’t. Instead, you began to look around for an escape, furtive eyes never leaving the creature for too long. A number of escape routes became obvious to you at once, though only a few of them were viable. Still, standing around and waiting for the inevitable attack was no option either, and so you did the first thing that you could. 

You rushed at the monster, heart pounding in your chest as you prayed you had enough element of surprise for your idea to work. The monster stood its ground, but so long as it didn’t try to attack you too soon… Its face was focused on you, not realizing what you intended to do until you darted to the side, running towards a set of stairs, the only escape route you thought you had a chance of getting to. An escape route that was blocked within seconds of you showing your intentions.

The creature warped to stand in front of you, crossbow aimed out at you and your daughter, who had begun to cry at the sudden jolting movement, even as you had caressed her as gently as possible. You held her tightly now, frozen in place as realization set in. It was too quick, and you had no other recourse. Against your will, your eyes shut as your body curled over your daughter. If you couldn’t get away entirely, you could at least do your best to protect her from whatever was about to happen, even if it meant using your own body. Your breath came in shaking gasps, but above that you could hear the outraged shout, a clang, and then the unmistakable sound of darkness dissipating back to where it came from.

When you opened your eyes again, it was to see Vanitas standing in front of you, Keyblade clenched in a white-knuckled grip. Tendrils of darkness rolled off of him and to the ground, each one leaving a large, mean-looking Unversed in their wake. These new Unversed stood tall, with rotund stomachs. Each of them had two pointed shields, and with each new one created they formed a circle around you and your daughter. 

Vanitas stood in front of you a moment longer, looking around the alley with wide, wild eyes. His mouth was open in a snarl, as if prepared to tear into the monsters directly if his Keyblade somehow failed to dispatch them. Quietly, you held your breath, knowing better than to startle him while he was like this. Then again, you’d never seen him quite like this. 

You let him spin in a circle, watching carefully as the tension in his shoulders lessened ever so slightly with the realization that the monsters were gone. 

“Vanitas…” you breathed. 

He turned his attention towards you and in one fell swoop his Keyblade and Unversed disappeared as he threw his arms around you and your daughter, who was still wailing. You shook in his arms, tears threatening your own eyes. 

“What… what were those Heartless doing here?”

His arms tightened around you. “They weren’t Heartless,” he said, the venom in his tone so biting that you thought it should burn the entire world to the ground. 

“Nobodies?” You barely managed. “But why were they after us?”

“I don’t know. But the person who sent them is going to regret it.”

You pulled back and looked at him with wide eyes. Your daughter’s wails had lessened to tremulous whines. 

“You know who sent them?”

He looked back at you, expression dark and complicated, somehow managing both enraged and wrathful, and protective. 

“Only one person commands those Nobodies.” You shuddered at his tone, allowing him to pull you close again as he said, “Let’s get home.”

He pulled you to your feet, releasing his hold on you to instead let his hand hover over the small of your back. His eyes roved you for any injuries, expression easing the slightest bit more as he saw there were none. Whoever this person was who’d sent the Nobodies, you knew their fate would not be pretty once Vanitas found them. 


End file.
